School Days: CodeWizardsHQ

Waaay back in my junior high and high school days, I remember the computer classes that were available to students. The technology was new, the computers were big and bulky, and it was generally a novelty. In this modern culture, the digital age, computers are simply everywhere. Unlike us, our children have grown up with technology that once was only imagined on children's programs like that old one, The Jetsons, lol. It's now the norm to enroll our kids in coding programs as a part of their educational experience, and that's what brings me to this review today. My 12 year old, tech loving daughter, had the opportunity to participate in a coding class this past week, and she's pretty excited about it! CodeWizardsHQ offers live classes for any and all students, and not only for homeschoolers! Classes are available for everyone, as you can see here on their General page, and then there are also those offered specifically for Homeschoolers .

General information about CodeWizardsHQ :

The classes are for students approximately from 5th to 12th grades, depending on interest and ability. You'll need a computer with a microphone and a speaker, and a reliable Internet connection. Also necessary is a browser like Chrome, Firefox, or Internet Explorer. You can use a headset with microphone, which may make everything sound a little more clear, but it's not a must have. We used the microphone /speaker installed in our computer which worked perfectly fine.

These live, one hour classes are small, with 6 to 8 students involved. The teachers are experienced in coding, and provide hands on projects as they instruct. Kids may be enrolled at any time throughout the year, as new classes begin each month. There is no commute time, as classes are online, and should you miss a class, they are recorded, so you can watch it at another time and easily get caught up. No experience is required to take these classes, and support is readily available through email, and their various resources.

Our experience:

Speaking for myself, I am anything but a computer/tech wizard, so I wasn't sure how I would like the class. I am definitely old school in many ways, although I'm trying to catch up. My 12 year old, on the other hand, had been asking me just a short time prior to this review opportunity, about learning how to code. We both went in with optimistic attitudes.

On the day of our class, we logged in, and the instructor, Sam, helped everyone get acquainted and comfortable. He was encouraging and friendly, stopping frequently to make sure that everyone was tracking with the lesson. The project that my daughter's class worked on was a short comic strip. I'm going to be honest here- it didn't take long for me to feel very lost, lol. HTML really is a different language! My daughter and I briefly looked at each other and were whispering to each other, "Ahh, what?!". My daughter asked for a little help, and Sam was very patient and helpful. He came back often to see if anyone needed more instruction. I was amazed at how quickly my girl caught on. She did learn the hard way, that she needed to save her work and images. I'm sure you can guess what happened- she lost a few pics. You can believe that she remembered to save her work from then on!
She is very interested in continuing with coding. I'll share some photos here:

This was a one time, one hour class that we participated in, and both my daughter and I agreed that it would have been beneficial to take the classes that usually come before this one, if only to have the meaning behind the computer language. Having said that, my daughter really enjoyed it, and wants to keep going. Education in STEM is important in our modern age, and getting the information to our kids when they're young is a big advantage. Our instructor underscored this fact as he told our class that because he had taken these classes from the time he was in about 7th grade, he was ahead of the game in this technology by the time he was in college.

This video provides more information about the program:

All in all, this was a great class for my daughter. One of the privileges of homeschooling my kids, is to watch them find their passions and talents. STEM is one of those for my girl, and I'm thrilled to have been introduced to CodeWizardsHQ . I can't wait to see where this road will take her in the future. Take a look for yourself, and see if it's an option for your family!

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